


Settling Dust (to be read between parts 4 and 5 of Always)

by Khansfringe



Series: Always [5]
Category: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms
Genre: A little tidbit to let you all know I'm editing again, Alpha John, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Johnlock - Freeform, M/M, Omega Sherlock, Omega Verse, Omegalock, fluff piece, part five is on the way
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-08
Updated: 2017-06-08
Packaged: 2018-11-11 01:27:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11138484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khansfringe/pseuds/Khansfringe
Summary: Life attempts to return to normal, but recent events have left their mark.





	Settling Dust (to be read between parts 4 and 5 of Always)

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all! I am back and editing! 
> 
> I decided to do a small little drabble type deal for this series. This was originally going to be cut, as it wasn't critical to the plot and fell between where part four ended and part five starts with a small time skip. But it was cute and I realize it goes more into how Katherine is affected by what happened near the end of part 4. 
> 
> Enjoy a small taste, I am working on part five for you all. <3

They sat quietly on the sofa for a while longer, Katherine sprawled out on their laps, still snoozing. John was watching Hamish chew on one of his fists.

“You’re coming tomorrow to go see mum right? She loves you just as much as me, and she’ll wonder why you aren’t there to see her if you don’t show up,” he said, trying to keep things light. His mother was out of the woods now, she’d be fine.

“She’s your mother John, I’m sure she’d be happier about seeing you there than me,” Sherlock murmured quietly. “But I’ll go, yes. She’ll want to see the pups, know they’re okay,” he murmured, looking down at Hamish who had moved to gum just the side of his hand rather than his whole fist.

John shrugged, watching Hamish. “I suppose he’s going to be hungry soon,” he said quietly, knowing that he should probably wake Kat for lunch anyway.  “Want me to go make a bottle for him?” he asked, nuzzling into Sherlock’s hair and inhaling deeply.

Sherlock hummed, looking down at Hamish. “Mm…alright,” he murmured. He sighed softly, reaching over to pet down Katherine’s hair. “Katty girl, baby it’s time to get up. You can’t sleep all day.”

“Mm.” Her nose wrinkled as she started to wake up, pulling her eyes open. “Papa…Daddy, I miss the end?” she asked, yawning softly.

John smiled gently at their daughter, easing her off his lap so he could stand. “Yeah, but it’s alright. We can always watch it another time,” he promised with a kiss to her forehead before he walked into the kitchen. He made a bottle for Hamish and returned to the living room to give it to Sherlock. “I’m going to start on lunch, any requests?” he asked as he smoothed down Katherine’s hair.

Katherine took a moment to wake up the rest of the way, looking at Hamish and poking his stomach a little as the infant started to greedily suck down the bottle when Sherlock gave it to him. She looked up at John then. “Want pineapple chicken Papa!” She said with a slight bounce on the sofa.

John grinned. “Yeah, alright. We can splurge for Chinese tonight,” he said, walking into the bedroom to take out his phone. He quickly called in their order to the restaurant and returned to his family, wrapping his arms around Sherlock and Kat again.

“Yay!” Katherine said, bouncing a little on the sofa and nuzzling against Sherlock’s side as John went down the hall to call. Sherlock smiled at her gently, seeing her small smile fad a bit a moment later. He could still see the weight of what she’d seen, that would take time. Sherlock sighed softly as he leaned into John, looking at the television which had switched over to the DVD menu, and then back down at Hamish who had nearly drained the bottle already.

“Goodness, you keep eating like this and I’ll have to add rice cereal to your bottles,” he murmured. John glanced over at Sherlock and then at Hamish.

“Nearly time to start introducing him to solids anyway,” he said as he reached over to rub Misha’s belly once he had finished off the bottle. Sherlock had been gone by this point with Katherine, had missed her first two years, the most important years. John had missed time with Sherlock, a few months with Hamish. Both of them were absentees, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t try their damnedest to make up for it.

“Really?” Sherlock asked. “Well, four months is the earliest, I read it somewhere or other but…it just seems soon. Though he can’t just maintain with formula if he keep sup with this pace,” he murmured, stroking a finger down Hamish’s cheek.

“Six months is a good place to start,” John said softly, tightening his arm around Katherine so she wouldn’t feel left out. “But yeah, he probably needs it sooner with as much as he’s eating,” he commented. Sherlock nodded.

“Which is a lot, I don’t know where it goes half the time,” he murmured, patting the infant’s back gently to burp him. He smiled over at Katherine who was leaning contentedly up against John. This was nice, he loved this. It was quiet, and there was nothing threatening them. John’s mother was still hurt, but Sherlock felt optimistic about that. Mindy was strong, gave that to John, a bullet never stood a chance of killing her.

John followed Sherlock’s gaze down to Katherine and found himself smilng. He combed some hair back from her face, leaning down to whisper in her ear. “Why don’t you go get your present that you got for Daddy? You remember where we hid it yeah?” he whispered, leaning back to grin at her.

Katherine gasped, having forgotten all about that. "Oh no!" she said, covering her mouth a little as she quickly slid off the sofa and dashed up the stairs. Sherlock furrowed his brow a little, holding a squirming Hamish. The infant was making grabby hands at John so Sherlock handed him over to him as Hamish clearly wanted John. By the time he was settled in John's arms Katherine bounded down stairs holding something behind her back, smiling at Sherlock and John, bouncing a small bit. 

John grinned at Hamish, bouncing him on his knees as Kat cam bounding back down the stairs, the small present held behind her back. He grinned, remembering sitting down and ordering it with her, guiding her hands in wrapping it and letting her write her name and Hamish's on the tag.

Katherine smiled, presenting the small package proudly. "Happy...ummm....late birthday Daddy!" she exclaimed, only pausing slightly to correct the statement. Sherlock smiled at her, reaching out to take the small box from her, then lifting her up and settling her on his lap. "Papa helped with the bow," she said, pointing to it. 

"It looks wonderful Katty," he said, glancing over at John with another smile. He carefully undid the ribbon and tore the paper off of the box. He lifted the lid of the gift box and let out a breath. Inside was a magnifying glass much like the old one that he had, which was worn and scratched a little on the lens. This one though was engraved with his initials. He smiled, pressing a kiss to Katherine's cheek.

"It's beautiful Katty girl, thank you," he said, hugging her as he looked at John. He stood up then, setting Katherine down as he walked over to his coat, pulling out his old magnifying glass and carrying it back to the sofa. 

He held it out to Katherine, "Do you think you can take care of this one? Maybe someday you can go on a case with me." he said with a smile, "You can solve things around the flat till then." he said as Katherine gasped, taking the magnifying glass with a gleeful laugh.

 

John grinned, leaning over and kissing Katherine's temple. "How about that, huh? What are you going to solve first?" he asked, bouncing Hamish on his knee and rubbing his back a little. "Maybe a mystery with your dollhouse? Wasn't there a murder last week?" he enquired, smirking over at Sherlock.

Katherine opened her mouth to answer, but nothing came out of her mouth. She shook her head, looking down at the magnifying glass in her hand, opening and closing it a little. Sherlock bit the inside of his lip, he remembered her telling them about that particular murder, a robber breaking into the house and pulling a gun on the father. Sherlock glanced at John, holding Katherine a bit tighter, knowing she was thinking about what happened with her gran

"I think it was just a robbery actually, someone stole a painting while everyone was gone, right hon?" he asked softly. Katherine nodded a little, and it occurred to him that Katherine wouldn't be as comfortable about those things now. At least not for a little while.

John cast a sad look at Katherine, concerned about her as always. "We'll go see Gran tomorrow, alright?" he promised, reaching over the hold her hand, squeezing it gently. He caught her eyes and smiled at her, running his thumb gently over the back of her hand. "And then in a few days we can go see Daddy's parents and Stephen, right? And you can show them your tags, can't you?" He leaned over, kissing her forehead and nuzzling into her hair a little.

Katherine sniffed, rubbing her nose. "Mm'tags?" she asked quietly, tilting her head. She reached over and pat Sherlock's chest where John's newer tags were under his shirt. "Daddy has tags though," she said quietly. Sherlock looked at John, he had never given Katherine the tags, with everything that had happened it had escaped their attention. 

John glanced up at Sherlock, realising then that he had gotten upset over the findings of his new tags, and they must have never given Katherine his old ones. "I'll be right back," he said, perching Hamish on his hip as he stood and walked into the bedroom, digging around in Sherlock's nightstand before he found them. He returned to the living room a few moments later, dangling the tags from his fingers. "Here you go, sweetheart," he said kindly, handing them over to her.

Katherine had leaned against Sherlock's chest as John was in their room, Sherlock sitting and combing his fingers through her hair gently, noting that her thumb had gone back into her mouth. She looked over at the tags dangling from John's fingers, reaching out and taking them. She set them in her lap, pulling the small magnifying glass open and holding it over the stamped metal, studying it carefully before slipping the chain over her neck.

"Thank you Papa....I'll keep them safe," she promised, patting the tags against her chest gently.

John smiled, kissing Kat's forehead before retaking his seat. Almost immediately, the buzzer rang for the door. He chuckled, handing Hamish over to Sherlock and walking over to grab his wallet. He quickly trotted downstairs and grabbed their food, thanking the deliveryman and tipping him well before he returned upstairs, setting the food on the table. "Come on, then," he called.

Sherlock stood up, holding Hamish close to one side and putting his hand on the back of Katherine's head, guiding her towards the kitchen. The four-year-old walked after John, climbing up into her seat and leaning back against the chair, fiddling with the tags around her neck silently. Hamish let out a squawk as Sherlock followed them, the smell of the food already filling the kitchen. Katherine's attention was caught when John scooped out a serving of the sweet and sour chicken she loved that had pineapple chunks in it. He set Hamish in his highchair, adjusting his cushion before sitting down in his own seat at the table. 

 


End file.
